Shipping gondola with removable side rails



Aug. 5, 1969 c. H. BETJEMANN SHIPPING GONDOLA, WITH REMOVABLE SIDE RAILSFiled May 31, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. (I/awa s 6 Zi'ewe'n l mAWE/P667 1591" 2/ T BY Aug. 5, 1969 c. H. BETJEMANN SHIPPING GONDOLAWITH REMOVABLE SIDE RAILS 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 31, 1968 w 1 IhHnHHu nWE/YTO E m m romoe H- Benenmu rno/Way A 5, 1959 c. H. BETJEMANNSHIPPING GONDOLA WITH REMOVABLE S'IDE RAILS Filed May 31, 1968 5Sheets-Sheet 5 l N VENTOR.

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United States Patent O M 3,459,326 SHIPPING GONDOLARXIL'ISH REMOVABLESIDE US. Cl. 2201.5 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A demountablecargo gondola having a floor assembly formed by a rectangular frameconstituted by a pair of side beams and a pair of end beams, boardsextending between said end beams and being flush with the top facethereof to define a floor surface, the side beams being of greaterheight than the end beams whereby the floor surface is depressed withrespect to the top face of the side beams. Secured to the corners of theframe are four hollow corner posts provided with bottom corner fittingsadapted to accommodate hooks and other engaging hardware. Between eachpair of posts at either end of the gondola there is disposed a removableend gate, whereas between each pair of posts at either side of thegondola there is disposed a removable side rail, which side rails have arectangular cross-section and may be laid on the floor against anassociated side beam to provide a broad track for supporting a loadwhich occupies the full width of the gondola. Telescopically receivedwithin each corner post is an extensible section terminating in a topcorner fitting, which section may be pinned to the corner post at anydesired level whereby the effective height of the posts may be adjustedto the height of the load cradled in the gondola.

Related application: This application is a continuationin-part of mycopending application, Ser. No. 581,905, filed Sept. 26, 1966, nowPatent No. 3,386,600, entitled, Demountable Shipping Gondolas.

This invention relates generally to open shipping gondolas, and moreparticularly to a demountable shipping gondola of adjustable heightwhich is adapted to accommodate uncrated cargo, such as Jeeps,ambulances and other vehicles, machinery, steel stock, as well as smallcontainer units.

Increasing use is being made in the United States and in highlydeveloped foreign countries of the containership concept. Acontainership is designed to receive and transport hundreds ofstandardized demountable cargo containers which may be loaded on ordischarged from a vessel in a matter of minutes, thereby effectingsignificant economies in time and cargo-handling costs. Huge trailersare now available for transporting such cargo containers to and fromdocking facilities, over super-highways, and turnpikes, thus providing afully integrated mode of transportation.

Essential to the containership concept is the cargo container, which isa shipping box suitable for storing and transporting bulk material,packages and pieces, as well as a number of smaller containers, thecargo container protecting the contents thereof from loss or damage andbeing large enough to entail mechanical handling. A cargo container issaid to be demountable when it can be handled in transit as a unit andwhen it can be mounted and secured in or on marine, rail, highway or aircarriers.

Demountable cargo containers have been standardized as to their heightand width, but they may vary in length. Thus standard containers areeight feet in width and eight feet in height, whereas their length liesmodularly in the range of 10 feet to 40 feet. But for the container-3,459,326 Patented Aug. 5, 1969 ships, cargo containers have beenstandardized in 20-feet lengths (20 x 8 x 8). Such containers are ofrugged construction, for they must have sufficient structural strengthto withstand, without permanent deformation, the static and dynamicloads imposed by pick-up and stacking operations and the impact shockand stresses encountered in normal carrier service.

Demountable cargo containers are provided with top corner fittingshaving end, side and top openings adapted to accept standard hooks,shackles, slings or other engaging hardware elements for registering,picking up and securing containers on railroad fiatcars, highwayvehicles, ships decks and hatches, as well as aircraft. The bottomcorners are also provided with fittings, these having end, side andbottom openings suitable for engagement with lifting devices as well aswith registering and securing devices. In order to facilitate verticalstacking of the containers, the bottom corner fittings must becompatible with the top corner fittings.

The demountable cargo gondola disclosed in said copending application isprovided with removable end gates to facilitate the entry and exit ofsmall shipping units, the gondola including corner posts having top andbottom corner fittings, the posts being extensible in height, Wherebythe dimensions of the gondola may be conformed to those of the cargoelements cradled therein. One advantage of this arrangement is thatgondolas may be aligned in tandem relation with their end gates removed,thereby defining an unobstructed channel through which goods may beloaded or unloaded by fork-lift truck or other means.

In the gondola disclosed in said copending application, the side wall orrails are fixedly connected to the corner posts, thereby precluding sideloading and unloading and also confining the load to the space betweenthe side walls.'In some instances, the width of the cargo to be loadedin the gondola is close to or substantially equal to the width of thegondola. Thus if a tractor, which is almost eight feet wide, is to beloaded into the gondola which also has an eight foot width, it cannot beend loaded therein, for the presence of the corner posts reduces thewidth of the entrance at the ends to well below eight feet. In otherinstances, even if the cargo can be end loaded, it may be moreconvenient to side load into the gondola.

Accordingly, it is the main object of the invention to provide a gondolawhose side rails are removable to per rnit side loading of cargo.

More specifically, it is an object of the invention to provide a gondolawith removable side rails which may be laid on the depressed floor of agondola against the side beams thereof to create a widened track forsupporting a load whose width is substantially equal to the width of thegondola.

A significant feature of the invention is that the effective length ofthe side rails is adjustable to facilitate removal of the side rails.When a gondola is supported at its ends on a carrier or other surface,the gondola tends to buckle and to impose a stress on the side rails.Hence, if the length of these removable rails was fixed, the rails couldnot readily be removed. However, by reducing the length of the stressedrails, the stress is relieved to permit removal thereof.

Also an object of the invention is to provide a gondola of theabove-described type which is of high strength, and which is providedwith securing means to permit lashing of the load to the cargo.

Briefly stated, these objects are accompanlished in a gondola having afloor assembly formed by a rectangular frame constituted by a pair ofside beams and a pair of end beams, boards extending between the endbeams and being flush with the top face thereof to define a floorsurface which is depressed relative to the top face of the side beamswhich are of greater height. Secured to the corners of the frame arefour hollow corner posts provided with bottom corner fittings adapted toaccommodate hooks and other hardware. Between each pair of posts ateither end of the gondola there is disposed a removable end gate,whereas between each pair of posts at either side of the gondola thereis disposed a removable side rail, which rail is of rectangularcross-section and may be laid on the floor against the related side beamto define a broad track for supporting a load whose width occupiessubstantially the full width of the gondola.

Telescopically received within each hollow corner post are extensiblesections terminating in top corner fittings, which section may be pinnedto the corner post at any desired level whereby the effective height ofthe posts may be adjusted to the height of the load cradled in thegondola.

For a better understanding of the invention, as well as other objectsand features thereof, reference is made to the following detailedexplanation to be read in conjunction with the drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gondola in accordance with myinvention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the gondola;

FIG. 3 is an end elevational view;

FIG. 4 is a partial plan view of the gondola with the side rail and someof the floor boards removed;

FIG. 5 is an exploded view showing the socket at the top of one of thecorner posts and the manner in which the side rail, the end gate and theextension section cooperate therewith;

FIG. 6 is an elevational view of the corner posts showing the manner inwhich a side rail is coupled thereto;

FIG. 7 is an end view of the corner post as seen in the directionindicated by lines 7-7 in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is an end view of the corner post as seen in the directionindicated by lines 8-8 in FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal section of the corner post as seen in the planeindicated by lines 9-9 in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a transverse section taken in the plane indicated by lines10-10 in FIG. 9; and

FIG. 11 is a transverse section taken through the gondola with the siderails resting against the side beams.

Referring now to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 there is shown a demountable gondolain accordance with the invention comprising a door assembly, generallydesignated by numeral 10, and four hollow upright posts 11, 12, 13 and14 welded or otherwise secured to the corners of the floor assembly.Extension sections 11A, 12A, 13A and 14A are telescopically received inthe posts. Also provided are a pair of removable end gates 15 and 16 anda pair of removable side rails 17 and 18.

At the base of each corner post is a bottom corner fitting, such asfitting 19 attached to the bottom of post 11, and having the usual end,bottom and side openings. Such fittings, which may be fabricated fromsteel or aluminum castings, are of the type employed in standarddemountable cargo containers and are adapted for use, for example, withtwist lock mountings which engage the fittings through the bottomopenings. Such mountings are secured to a fiat bed track or welded tothe deck of the vessel. The bottom corner fittings are also usable withlifting hardware or hooks.

Attached on top of the extendible section of each post is a top cornerfitting, such as fitting 20 on section 11A. Each top corner fitting hasend, top and side openings, which openings are differently shaped andare adapted to accommodate hooks, shackles or other engaging pick-updevices. Because of the top and bottom corner fittings the gondola lendsitself to handling in the same manner as a standard container.

The floor assembly 10 is formed by a pair of side beams 21 and 22, and apair of end beams 23 and 24 of reduced height, the beams beingpreferably fabricated of 4 steel. As best seen in FIG. 4, laid over agrid of crosspieces 25 bridged between side beams 21 and 22 arelongitudinally extending floor boards 26, the cross-pieces being formedpreferably of aluminum while the boards are of wood. The boards lieflush with the top flange of end beams 23 and 24 to form a floor surfacewhich is depressed with respect to the side beams whose height isgreater than the end beams.

The gondola structure is reinforced by trusses 27, 28, 29 and 30 whichare angled between the corner posts and the beams. To permit cargo to betied to the gondola, securing rings 31 are provided on the side beams,and securing bars 32 are provided at the juncture of the posts and sidebeams.

Referring now to FIGS. 5 to 10, there is illustrated the manner in whicha removable side rail and a removable end gate are coupled to a cornerpost, post 11 having been selected as representative. It will be seenthat a hollow socket member 33 is welded to the upper end of hollow post11, the dimensions of the channel in the socket matching those of thepost so that extensible section 11 may pass through the socket into thepost.

The length of the section 11A is such that it may be fully telescopedwithin post 11, in which position the top corner fitting 20 liesdirectly adjacent the upper end of the post, as shown in dotted lines inFIG. 2. Or the section may be raised to its maximum extent to provide aneffective corner-post height of eight feet to correspond to that of astandard container.

Since the posts are adjustable to the height of the cargo cradled in thegondola, in some situations the post height may be, say, five andone-half feet, in others seven feet, and still others, eight feet.Inasmuch as gondolas of adjustable height may be stacked one on top ofthe other, one need not limit the maximum height of each gondola toeight feet. Thus, if one gondola is adjusted to a seven and one-halffoot height, the other may be adjusted to an eight and one-half footheight to provide a stacked total of sixteen feet, which is equivalentto two stacked standard containers. Hence, in the construction ofgondolas in accordance with the invention, the extensible sections maybe designed to go above eight feet to accommodate cargo whose height isgreater than that which can be housed within a standard container.

The extensible sections are provided with equi-spaced bores, such asbores 11A, to permit the section to be pinned to the associated post bya pair of bolts 34 and 35. Bolt 34 is extended through a pair ofregistered bores 36A and 36B in the lower end of socket 33, the boltgoing through that bore in section 11A, which at the selected positionof the section, is in alignment with the socket bores. To preventaccidental retraction of bolt 34, it is provided with a side arm 34Awhich, in the vertical position, is received within a clip 37 attachedto post 11. To retract bolt 34 side arm 34A is turned counterclockwiseto withdraw it from its holding clip, the bolt then being free forremoval. Bolt 35, which acts to stabilize the position of the extensiblesection Within the post, is entered into a bore at a position directlyabove the bore on section 11A which receives bolt 34. Bolt 35 goes intomatching notches 38A and 38B, cut into the upper end of socket 33, thisbolt having a side arm 35A, which is received in a holding clip 39.

End gate 15 is removable from the posts, each extremity of the gatehaving a tongue member 40 which enters a slot 41 in the upper end ofsocket 33, the slot having a trapezoidal configuration conforming to theshape of the tongue. Each end gate is removed by lifting it to bring thetongues out of the slots. To hold the gate in place and to preventremoval thereof, each end of gate 15 is provided with a retractablelocking pin 42 which, when the gate is in place, is in a posture toenter a hole 43 in the socket.

One end of each of the removable side rails 17 and 18 is provided with atongue or similar means to connect the rail to its associated post.However, since as pointed out previously, it is necessary to make theeffective length of these rails adjustable to facilitate locking therail firmly in place as well as the subsequent removal thereof underconditions where stress may be imposed on the rail, the other end of theside rails is provided (note FIG. 9) with an end plate 44 having aninternallythreaded aperture which receives an externally-threadedextension rod 45, the free end of the rod terminating in a conical cap46.

In attaching the side rail to the post, the conical cap 46 is admittedinto an open box 47, welded to a wall of socket 33, the box having anotch 47A to accommodate rod 45. Rod 45 is extended or retracted axiallywith respect to end plate 44 on the side rail by means of a ratchetwrench 48 of standard design which is adapted to turn the rod in theappropriate direction.

As shown in FIG. 11, when side rails 17 and 18 are removed from theposts, they may be laid down on floor boards 26 against side beams 21and 22. The dimensions of these rails are such that they are equal inheight to the difference between the heights of the side and end beams.Consequently, the top face of each side rail is flush with the flange ofthe associated side beam to provide a broad track or platform forsupporting the wheels W and W of a vehicle or any other load whose widthis about the same as that of the gondola.

Thus the gondola may be side-loaded and used to accommodate loads whichtake up the full width of the gondola. These loads may be secured to thegondola by lashing them to the rings and bars provided for this purpose.

The removable side rails of a gondola according to the invention alsoafford maximum flexibility in cargo loading and discharging. In NorthEurope, most factories are equipped only with overhead cranes, whichwould be used in loading long pieces of steel or copper, bulkymachinery, etc., into the gondola. In the United States, however, suchproducts are usually handled in factories through the use of fork-liftmachines. Thus, in the instances cited above, long pieces of steel orcopper, bulky machinery, etc., would have to be dragged out of thegondola if it were equipped with rigid side rails. However, withremovable side rails, such cargo could be expeditiously and economicallyhandled with fork-lift machines after the side rail had been removed. Oncargo shipped from the United States to Europe, loading would beaccomplished with fork-lift machines, and discharge effected by overheadcranes.

The telescoping corner posts, in accordance with the invention, make itpossible for the height of the gondola container to be adjusted to theheight of the cargo within the gondola, reflecting a range from fourfeet, four inches, to eight feet, in increments of six inches. However,since the extensible section of the corner post is readily removable,this permits the use of longer interchangeable corner posts. Such longerextensible corner posts facilitate the handling of cargo ten feet ormore in height.

The ability of the telescoping corner post of the gondola container toadjust to the height of the cargo stowed within the gondola, enables ashipper to maximize the number of containers transported on a cellularcontainership. Many containerships today have a maximum carpacity of sixhundred standard 8 x 8' x 20' containers below deck, such containersutilizing a total of 4,800 lineal feet of height within the individualcells of the vessel. As an example, if gondola containers adjusted to aheight of six feet were transported aboard the same vessel, the vesselscapacity would increase from six hundred containers to eight hundredcontainers, an increase of thirty-three percent.

While there has been shown and described a preferred embodiment of theinvention, it will be appreciated that many changes and modificationsmay be made therein without departing from the essential spirit thereofas defined in the annexed claims.

What I claim is:

1. A shipping gondola for loading assorted cargo into ships adapted toaccommodate standard demountable containers having predetermineddimensions, said gondola compnsmg:

(A) a rectangular floor assembly having length and width dimensionscorresponding to those of a standard container, said floor assemblyhaving side beams which extend a predetermined distance above the floorsurface whereby the floor is depressed,

(B) four upright posts attached to the corners of the floor assembly,

(C) a bottom corner fitting secured to the bottom of each post,

(D) a top corner fitting secured to the top of each post,

(E) a pair of end gates between the posts at the respective ends of thegondola, and

(F) a pair of side rails removably mounted between the posts at therespective sides of the gondola, the height of said rails correspondingsubstantially to said predetermined distance whereby they may be laid onthe floor against said side beams to provide a platform for supporting acargo whose width is no greater than the width of the gondola.

2. A gondola as set forth in claim 1, wherein said posts are extendibleto vary the effective height of the gondola.

3. A gondola as set forth in claim 1, wherein said end gates areremovable.

4. A gondola as set forth in claim 1, wherein said floor assemblyfurther includes end beams and floor boards extending longitudinallybetween said end beams along cross-pieces bridging the side beams.

5. A gondola as set forth in claim 1, further including adjustable meansto vary the effective length of each of said side rails.

6. A gondola as set forth in claim 5, wherein said adjustable meansincludes a bolt which is threadably received in an end plate in saidside rail and ratchet means to extend or retract said bolt.

References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS 573,060 12/1958 Belgium.

GERALD M. FORLENZA, Primary Examiner FRANK E. WERNER, Assistant ExaminerUS. Cl. X.R. 214l0; 217-43

